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CVCA Report: BC Pulls Down 29.2% of Canadian Venture Capital Dollars in 2014 ($554 Million)
Thursday, February 5, 2015
M&A activity expected to increase, IPO activity expected to drop
Vancouver, BC, February 5, 2015--(T-Net)--The Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) announced today that it has released its annual "VC and PE Market Activity report" for 2014.
The report outlines that British Columbia punched well above its weight and pulled in approximately 29.2 % of the reported venture capital in Canada last year in total VC investment dollar terms ($554 million of $1.9 Billion total in Canada), and received 72 of the 379 VC deals in CAnada last year (or 19.0%).
That's well above Alberta ($52 million) and Quebec ($295 million), and 2nd only to Ontario's $932 million.
Last time we checked Ontario had approximately triple the population of BC, and a much larger corporate head office presence, so all in all, BC faired pretty well in 2014, according to the report.
Two of the top VC deals included in the CVCA report were Hootsuite's $66.5 million capital raise in 2014 (Accel, Insight Venture Partners, OMERS Ventures, Difference Capital), and D-Wave Systems $61.8 million (Fidelity, PSP, bcIMC, BDC Capital, Goldman Sachs, Explore Holdings, Astrolink, DFJ, Discovery Capital, GrowthWorks, Kensington Capital Partners).
Regular T-Net readers will be familiar with some of the other major venture capital deals completed in 2014.
Yaletown Venture Partners (10 deals, $52.6 million, Version One Ventures (8deals, $127.5 million) and Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital (8 deals, $35.1 million) were the most active BC-based or headquartered venture capital firms in 2014, according to the CVCA report.
BDC Capital Inc. completed 102 VC deals worth $426.1 million in 2014 according to the report.
Two of the largest (BC based) venture capital backed companies that IPO'ed in 2014 were in the life sciences area: Aquinox Pharmaceuticals Inc. ($51.2 million, Ventures West, B.C. Advantage Fund, Baker Brothers, Augment Investments, Johnson & Johnson Development, Pfizer) and Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. ($47.1 million, MX Associates, Lipoterx, InterWest Partners, FMR, INVESCO Private Capital, JPMorgan Partners, Novo A/S, Pfizer, Royal Bank Capital Partners, Working Opportunity Fund, Ventures West, Takeda, Novartis Pharma).
Overall, venture capital and private equity activity posted strong results in 2014.
According to the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association's (CVCA) 2014 VC and PE Market Activity report, there was a total of 379 venture capital deals with $1.9 billion invested, and 296 private equity deals with $41.2 billion invested last year in 2014.
"Venture capital and private equity investment remains robust and the feeling amongst our industry is that won't change in 2015," said Mike Woollatt, CEO, CVCA. "Despite the economic uncertainty in Canada, there are opportunities."
The strong results are expected to continue in 2015.
Data collected from a comprehensive survey of CVCA members shows that the vast majority (77 per cent) believe current economic conditions favour the private capital industry. Notably, almost two-thirds (61 per cent) of private equity members believe that depressed oil prices improve their business outlook for this year.
CVCA member survey results also provide a window into how exits for 2015 are expected to develop. Eighty per cent believe IPO activity will remain the same or decrease (44 per cent and 36 per cent respectively), while 86 per cent believe M&A activity will remain the same or increase (evenly split).
This marks the first time the CVCA has used its own database, entitled InfoBase, to produce a snapshot of the Canadian market. InfoBase is a comprehensive database on Canadian private capital investments, exit, and fundraising activities. Much of the data is submitted and verified by the CVCA's members.
Additional Information (Venture Capital)
Highlights:
Venture capital disclosed amounts totaled $1.9 billion invested in 2014. ICT continues to drive the majority of venture capital investment (63 per cent of completed deals).
Additional Information (Private Equity)
Report Highlights
Private equity disclosed amounts totaled $41.2 billion invested in 2014. The energy and power sector remains the key driver of overall activity in terms of deals and dollars invested (27 per cent of completed deals).
About the CVCA
The CVCA is the voice of Canada's venture capital and private equity industry. We are focused on improving the private capital ecosystem by broadening industry awareness and providing market research, networking, and professional development opportunities. We also advocate on behalf of the industry to ensure sound public policy that encourages a favourable investment environment. The CVCA works alongside its members, who represent the vast majority of private capital firms in Canada, to improve the industry and drive innovation and growth.
For further information, please contact:
Kieran Lawler Director of Communications
Direct: 416-487-0519 x204
Mobile: 416-303-0799
klawler@cvca.ca
Ashley Smith
Communications Associate
416-487-0519 x201
asmith@cvca.ca